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Monthly Archives: August 2015

Thanks to a gift from a relative, I just completed the final session of a set of three private Pilates reformer lessons. If you’ve ever thought about taking a class or wondered what it’s like, here’s my take.

What is Pilates?

Perhaps the better question is “who” is Pilates? In fact, the reason the word is capitalized is because it actually is the name of the founder of the exercise – Joseph Pilates (1883-1967). There are some misconceptions about Pilates himself and the exercises that carry his name.

First, he wasn’t a dancer. He was a very sickly child suffering from asthma. He believed that physical fitness was the key to overcoming his illness. He became a self-taught athlete, strengthening his body using the methods we now attribute to him so that he could compete as a skier, diver, gymnast and boxer. Much later in life, he would share exercise studio space with the New York City Ballet. His exercise methods caught the attention of his neighbors who recognized his methods, which uniquely combine strengthening and flexibility movements with focus on the core (the collective term for the abdominal and back muscles), would be extremely beneficial to their dancers. As a result, the Pilates method was adopted by professional dancers and has been associated with dance ever since.

Second, the exercises preceded his development of the machine now known as the Pilates reformer (pictured above), not the other way around. Many Pilates purists insist that one isn’t really doing the Pilates method as it originated unless it’s done on a reformer. The reality is, Joseph Pilates developed his exercises for himself on the floor using only his body weight. But, the German-born Pilates was training self-defense to detectives at Scotland Yard in England when World War I broke out and, as such, he was interned as an “enemy alien” by the British army. While there, he trained others who were interned. Some of them were ill or maimed. He attached springs and pulleys to hospital beds to help train those who were too weak to do his methods on the floor. This is how the very first Pilates reformers came to be.

What Joseph realized was most people don’t have the core muscle strength to do his methods with proper form without machine assistance. So, using a reformer is a way to build up that muscle strength in order to do the Pilates method properly on a mat. For this reason, Pilates reformer classes are very beneficial as a starting point for those who are rehabilitating from injury or who have other musculature challenges.

Pilates Today

Joseph Pilates’ methods are perhaps more popular in the mainstream today than they ever were when he was alive. His philosophy, that all movement comes from the core and that one isn’t really fit and strong unless the core is very strong, was far ahead of its time. Exercise science has since proven he was right. Slowly, his methods, first adopted by dancers and gymnasts, have become a cornerstone of training for all athletes. And now mat Pilates, Pilates reformer and Pilates hybrid classes, such as Barre and the Lotte Berk method, are mainstream offerings for novice exercisers as well.

Pilates Reformer Classes: The reformer machine is a rectangular box with a sliding seat or platform. The platform is attached to springs for resistance. The springs can be interchanged for different resistance levels. Similarly, straps that can be looped through hands or feet are attached to the box with resistance springs or to the platform through pulleys. A trained reformer instructor guides you through a series of movements either seated or lying on the platform, sometimes using the straps as well. The machines themselves are costly. This along with the small class size with a specialized instructor makes these classes rather expensive compared to other exercise classes.

Mat Pilates Classes: Because reformer classes are out of reach financially for many, mat Pilates classes are a more affordable alternative. Done on a mat similar to a yoga mat, using mostly body-weight resistance and some props, such as resistance bands and a magic circle, these classes mimic the movements done on the reformer.

Mat Pilates can also be DIY. For a summary of the benefits of Pilates and tips on setting up your own practice at home, read this post from Jen Reviews.

In Pilates, form is valued over repetitive motion. Whereas traditional strength training usually involves a high number of repetitions, Pilates uses slow, controlled and physically challenging movements at low repetitions.

What Did I Think?

Though I’ve done some mat Pilates work and many Pilates hybrid classes, the work on the reformer took the challenge to a whole new level for me. These classes, each lasting an hour, were tough! But, as a trainer myself, I appreciated how the machines, coupled with an experienced instructor, forced me to put form first. This tells me it’s an excellent, safe way to strength and flexibility train. Yes, the core muscles were targeted throughout and I left there with my abdominal and back muscles completely fatigued. But it wasn’t just a core workout. Use of the straps meant I was working my legs, arms and shoulders as well. If you’re looking for a unique way to get a full-body workout, I highly recommend giving it a try if you have the means and Pilates reformer classes near you.

A big shout out to Jennifer at Pilates and More in Dobbs Ferry, NY for three great workouts!

We’ve all been there. Victimized by illness, surgery, injury, work, travel or personal crisis or sidelined by our own demons known as inertia and lack of motivation – no matter the reason, it’s depressing to face the loss of hard-earned fitness gains and intimidating to get back on that horse.

It’s important to understand that we tend to overestimate losses from a hiatus and underestimate our abilities to erase those losses. This leads to feelings of hopelessness, making us more likely to continue the lapse. The truth is, a relatively short break does very little damage and whatever losses have taken place can quickly be regained. However, if one allows her short break to turn into months away from exercise, the snowball-rolling-down-the-hill affect is real and much harder to turn around.

So, let’s dispense with the incorrect assumptions we make about time off from exercise and learn the truth about what it means, what it does to our bodies, how to limit the damage and what we need to do to get back on track.

How Long is Too Long?

A couple of weeks away from a structured fitness routine is nothing to worry about. Beyond that, it depends on several factors such as overall fitness level, age, what you are/aren’t doing during the break and whether we’re talking about cardiovascular or strength losses.

Fitness Level: If you workout four or more times a week and you’ve been doing this consistently for a year or more, you can afford more time off before seeing significant losses in cardiovascular fitness and strength. However, if your fitness regimen is more sporadic, less consistent or relatively new, your gains are comparatively smaller meaning modest losses represent more of a setback.

Age: Not surprising, studies show the older we are the quicker we rack up fitness losses during a hiatus. One particular study showed seniors’ losses were realized two times faster than individuals who were 40 years their junior.

The Nature of the Break: Very few people are completely sedentary during their breaks. If one has been bedridden due to a catastrophic accident or serious medical condition, then muscle atrophy and cardiovascular regression happen very quickly. But, that doesn’t describe most of our fitness lapses. Chances are, even if you’ve been away from fitness-centric activities, you probably haven’t been away from all activity. Any activity done during an exercise break can help to slow losses.

Cardiovascular Losses: In exercise studies, cardiovascular gains and losses are measured by studying an individual’s VO2 max. What that means is scientists measure how much oxygen the person takes in and how efficiently the person’s body uses the oxygen while she is exercising. For the regular exerciser, two to four weeks away from cardio workouts translates to significant losses (40-50% in two studies) in VO2 max. For the novice exerciser, gains made in the last two months of regular cardio can be erased in four weeks away from a heart pumping workout.

Strength Losses: Strength training breaks are much more forgiving. In fact, for the regular strength trainer who isn’t bedridden, one can take up to five weeks off from pumping iron before significant muscle strength is lost. The news is good too for the novice strength trainer. While some types of strength gains deteriorated after 13 weeks off in a study of new exercisers, other measures of muscle strength went unchanged in that same 13 week break.

Turning the Ship Around

Now you know where you stand in terms of possible losses. Is it going to take twice as long to gain back what you’ve lost? Not even close.

While cardiovascular losses happen quickly, the flipside is also true. Gains are made very quickly. Depending upon how often and how vigorous your new workouts are, you can gain back all losses in equal to or less than the length of time of the break.

As for strength training, it does take regular, consistent doses of strength training to realize measurable gains in muscle strength and toning. But, as stated above, it takes a while to lose what you’ve gained as long as you’re doing some activity during your lapses.

Mitigating Damage from Future Hiatuses

Some exercise breaks are sudden and beyond our control. Others are predictable or can be mitigated once we have to face them. If you know you have surgery upcoming or you find yourself dealing with a nagging injury, knowledge and a little creativity is all you need to stave off the worst of fitness setbacks.

First, find out from your physician what you can and cannot do during recovery. Maybe you can’t run but perhaps you can walk, swim or bike. Your orthopedist may nix squats and lunges but that doesn’t prohibit you from doing seated upper body strength exercises or core specific workouts.

Second, be especially vigilant with your diet. It’s discouraging enough to face fitness losses from forced inactivity, don’t add to your woes by gaining weight too. Load up on whole fruits, vegetables and grains, lean proteins and healthy fats and shun highly processed foods. Focusing on a variety of quality, whole foods ensures you’re getting enough of the nutrients that help you heal and keep infections at bay. Even when eating very healthy foods, keep a careful eye on portions to avoid taking in more calories than your body needs.

Lastly, get plenty of sleep. Sleep is crucial to the healing process and to keep hormones that control hunger and satiety in check.

If you find yourself on a two week break from your regular workout routine, don’t sweat it. If this post has taught you anything, I hope it’s that the stress of agonizing over a short-term break is worse than the break itself. If, however, you find yourself on a longer hiatus, I hope this post helps you put it into better perspective. Keep the break as short as possible, do your best to limit the damage and get back on that horse.

{Information on and links to studies referenced in this blog post can be viewed in this article from Greatist.}

Fit&Happier Workout of the Month defined: These are 30 minute general fitness workouts designed to offer a complete and balanced approach to strength and cardiovascular training in the most efficient way possible. Strength training workouts will each feature a different form of resistance, or load, so that you can choose the type of resistance based on equipment availability and your preference. These will offer full-body strength training and muscle toning with base exercises appropriate for beginners and progressions for those more experienced in strength training. Cardio workouts are designed to get the most calorie burn possible in the time allotted. Combo workouts combine strength and cardio training into one, efficient, full-body, calorie-burning workout. All workouts conclude with flexibility training as no workout is complete without it. Click on the exercises to link to step-by-step written and video instructions provided by ACE Fitness.

The What & Why of Interval Training

Sometimes fitness terminology can be intimidating to the novice exerciser. But don’t let interval training scare you into avoidance. The concept is really very simple. Interval training refers to a specific way to perform a cardiovascular workout.

When most people envision a traditional cardio workout – walking, running, cycling, rowing, swimming or elliptical training – they imagine a steady state workout. The exerciser selects a set pace and goes at that pace for a certain distance or amount of time. Interval training uses a ratio of two different paces – the work pace and the recovery pace. The work phase is a pace above what the exerciser can perform at steady state – a vigorous pace. The recovery phase is a pace at or just slightly below the exerciser’s steady state pace – in the moderate range.

The interval is represented as a ratio – work:recovery. The most common interval training ratio is 1:4 using minutes. Meaning you perform one minute at your work (vigorous) pace and four minutes at your recovery (moderate) pace. In this case, each interval takes a total of five minutes. If you perform six full intervals at this ratio, your workout will be 30 minutes in length.

But what is the point of interval training? Why not simply jog for 30 minutes at a steady state pace? The answer is exercise science has taught us that interval training is superior to steady state training if you have one or more of the following fitness goals:

Increase Total Calorie Burn: If you have weight-loss goals, interval training is your friend. Exercise studies have proven over and over again that one burns more calories during and after an interval workout as compared to a steady state workout of the same length of time.

Increase Steady State Speed or Transition from Walking to Running: Before interval training was used by exercise newbies for extra calorie burn, it was used by endurance athletes as part of their weekly regimen to increase their race speeds over time. The small doses of a faster pace during an interval workout teaches the body to adapt to the faster pace as the work intervals lengthen and the recovery intervals shorten over time. With the recent explosion of amateur endurance races, more and more marathoners and triathletes are using interval training to better their race day speeds. And many avid walkers have become avid runners by using interval training techniques.

Increase Cardiovascular Endurance: In addition to increasing one’s speed, interval training also teaches the body to adapt to endurance stressors and the cardiovascular system responds in kind, taking in more oxygen and running more efficiently. This allows the endurance athlete to not only increase her speed but go for longer periods of time at that speed.

Guard Against Exercise Ruts: Let’s face it, steady state cardiovascular training, particularly if being performed on a machine, can get boring. Interval training is a great way to change it up while giving you the added bonuses of increased speed, endurance and calorie burn.

Interval Workout

Warm-Up: Go at a slow to moderate pace, gradually building up speed for a total of 3-10 minutes before heading into your first interval.

Intervals: Select a unit of measurement. Minutes are commonly used. Most sports watches and many fitness apps have an interval training option to help you keep track. But, it doesn’t have to be a length of time. You could choose distance intervals (meters or yards) on a machine or laps on a track or in a pool. It is recommended, no matter what unit of measurement you choose, to always begin interval training at a 1:4 ratio. How you progress your intervals over time depends upon your fitness goals:

Weight-loss & Increase Speed: Let’s assume our exerciser has been doing six 1:4 minute intervals for 30 minutes and is now ready to progress. Her new ratio is 1:3. Now that it’s a total of 4 minutes she’ll be completing more intervals – 7 or 8 in a 30 minute period instead of six. The next progression would be 10 interval bouts at a 1:2 ratio. Then 15 interval bouts at a 1:1 ratio. After that, she should return to a 1:4 ratio but she’ll increase the unit of measurement, and so on.

Increase Endurance: Now let’s assume our example exerciser from above wants to also increase her endurance. In this case, she’ll switch between increasing total workout time and progressing her interval ratio. First, she’ll add one or two interval bouts at the same 1:4 ratio, making her total workout time 35 or 40 minutes. When she has reached her maximum workout time (or distance) goal, let’s say 90 minutes, she’ll return to a 30 minute workout at a 1:3 ratio and gradually increase her total workout time to 90 minutes again. The next progression would be a 1:2 ratio, then 1:1 ratio, and so on.

Cool-Down: Always allow for proper cool-down, gradually slowing your pace, to normalize your heart rate and prepare your body for necessary stretching. A cool-down should last between three and ten minutes.

Stretching: No workout is complete without stretching all the major muscle groups worked during the training program. Hold each stretch for 20-30 seconds. For examples of stretches, click on your training discipline under “Activity Specific Workouts of the Month” below and scroll down to the flexibility training portion of the workout.

Last month, I gave you a summer-long assignment for your Small Step. If you missed it, you can click here to read it. That means that this month is simply a reminder to keep plugging on: reflect upon what’s working and what isn’t; revamp your goals and strategies and renew your commitment to fitness. I’ve listed some of the tasks and strategies you’ll be working on for the next month and provided you with a link to one of my previous posts that can give you some insight and pointers to help you along:

If you’re new to the Small Steps series, you can read about the philosophy and strategies of the series here. Know the Small Steps strategies don’t need to be done in any particular order and are independent of one another. So, you can begin the series with this post, continue throughout the rest of the year and pick up what you missed next year.